Conveyable cover former and fastening system

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for forming a cover about an article and for automatically fastening the cover to the article, and optionally, for automatically placing a label on the covered article. The apparatus is provided with a platform having at least one opening sized to allow passage therethrough of an article. A conveyable cover forming assembly having contacting portions for contacting a sheet of material is supported on a conveying assembly beneath the opening in the platform. The article can be pushed into the cover forming assembly, causing the sheet to be formed into a cover about the article. The apparatus also provides for automatically applying a band or fastener about the covered article for fastening the cover about the article wherein the cover forming assembly is conveyed via the rail to the banding or fastening device. The apparatus may also include a labeling device for automatically applying a label to the covered article.

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/088,976 filed on Jul.8, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,707.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for using aconveyable cover former for placing a cover about an article, conveyingthe covered article to a fastening device, and automatically applying afastener about the covered article, and more particularly, but not byway of limitation, to such apparatus and methods wherein the article isa potted plant or flower pot.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to an apparatus and method for forminga cover about an article, conveying the article and cover to a fasteningdevice and automatically fastening the cover to the article, andoptionally for automatically placing a label on the covered article. Thearticle may be an article such as a potted plant or flower pot and thecover may be a decorative cover. The invention satisfies the need forrapidly covering and fastening the cover about an article with a minimalamount of manual effort and in a location having a limited amount ofavailable space.

The apparatus comprises a platform having a support surface formedthereon. An opening sized to accommodate an article for passagetherethrough extends through the support surface. The support surface isadapted to support at least portions of a sheet of material in aposition generally over a conveyable cover forming assembly or molddisposed near the opening in the support surface. The conveyable coverforming assembly or mold has contacting portions for contacting thesheet of material. The conveyable cover forming assembly or mold openingis sized and configured to receive the article.

The apparatus further comprises a fastening or tying device forautomatically applying a fastener about a portion of the outer surfaceof the covered article for fastening the cover about the article afterthe cover is formed about the article.

The apparatus further comprises conveying assembly or rail for conveyingthe covered article and conveyable cover forming assembly or mold fromthe cover forming position to a fastener application position at thefastening or tying device.

The apparatus may also comprise a labeling device for automaticallyapplying a label to a portion of the outer surface of the cover of thecovered article. The apparatus may further comprise an assembly forautomatically placing a sheet of material on the support surface.

The present invention also comprises a method for processing an article.The process initially comprises providing a platform having a supportsurface formed thereon and an opening extending through the supportsurface. The opening is as described above. The conveyable cover formingassembly or mold has contacting portions and is sized to receive anarticle, which may be a flower pot. The next step is placing a sheet ofmaterial in a cover forming position over the opening and on the supportsurface wherein the sheet of material, in the cover forming position, ispositioned over the conveyable cover forming assembly or mold.

The next step is providing the article and positioning the article in aposition over the sheet of material so the article is disposed generallyabove and near the portion of the sheet of material which is above theconveyable cover forming assembly or mold. Then, the article is moved ina direction which causes the lower end of the article to engage aportion of the sheet of material. The article and portions of the sheetof material pass into the conveyable cover forming assembly or moldcausing the sheet of material to contact or nearly contact both theouter peripheral surface of the article and the contacting portions ofthe conveyable cover forming assembly. The sheet is pressed about theouter peripheral surface of the article to form a cover about thearticle.

The conveyable cover forming assembly or mold is automatically conveyedon a conveying assembly such as a rail so that the covered article ismoved into a fastener applicating position at the fastening device.After the covered article is conveyed to the fastener applicatingposition a fastener is automatically applied about a portion of theouter surface of the cover of the article for fastening the cover aboutthe article. Then the covered article is removed from the conveyablecover forming assembly. The covered article may be removed before orafter the conveyable cover forming assembly is returned via theconveying assembly to near the platform. Also, the method may comprisethe additional step of engaging an automatic labeling means andautomatically applying a label to a portion of the outer surface of thecover of the article prior to the removal of the covered article.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a first sheet of material with one end turnedup and constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a second sheet of material with one end turnedup and constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the first and the second sheets ofmaterial disposed adjacent each other.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing bonding areas on the surface of afirst sheet or a second sheet which cause bonding of the second sheetand the first sheet.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a modified first and second sheetsof material.

FIG. 6 is another cross-sectional view of a modified first sheet ofmaterial connected to a modified second sheet of material.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of still another modified first sheetof material connected to a modified second sheet of material.

FIG. 8 is another cross-sectional view of yet another modified firstsheet of material connected to a modified second sheet of material.

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view of a plurality of sheets of material,constructed in accordance with the present invention forming acontinuous roll, the roll partially unrolled to reveal a single sheetstill attached thereto.

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic view of a plurality of sheets of materialforming a continuous roll of material disposed in a dispenser.

FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic view showing a roll of material wherein theroll of material comprises a first and a second sheet of materialconstructed in accordance with the present invention disposed in adispenser (diagrammatically shown in FIG. 11) for dispensing the firstand the second sheets of material from the roll of material.

FIG. 12 is a diagrammatic view of a roll of material for dispensing afirst and a second sheet of material constructed in accordance with thepresent invention from the roll of material.

FIG. 13 is a side elevational view of a pad of first and second sheetsof material constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of a sheet of material with a sheet extensionconnected thereto constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a plan view showing the upper surface of another sheet ofmaterial with a sheet extension connected thereto constructed inaccordance with the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a pre-formed decorative pot cover.

FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of a tying assembly of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 is a plan view of the tying assembly of FIG. 17.

FIG. 19A is a perspective view of a cover forming mold of FIG. 17.

FIG. 19B is a perspective view of another version of a cover formingmold of FIG. 17.

FIG. 20 is a side elevational view of a version of the present inventionhaving a material dispenser.

FIG. 21 is a plan view of the version of the present invention shown inFIG. 20.

FIG. 22A-22D are side elevational views of the apparatus of FIG. 17while in operation.

FIG. 23 is a side view of a potted plant having a cover fastenedthereto.

FIG. 24 is a side view of a potted plant having a cover fastenedthereto, the cover having a sheet extension.

DESCRIPTION

In one version, the present invention comprises an apparatus forprocessing an article such as a potted plant or flower pot. Theapparatus comprises a platform supported by a framework. The platformhas a support surface formed thereon and an opening extending throughthe support surface. The opening is sized to accommodate an article tobe passed therethrough. The article has an upper end, a lower end, andan outer peripheral surface.

The apparatus further comprises a conveyable cover forming assemblyhaving contacting portions and a receiving end and sized to receive thearticle. The cover forming assembly is further adapted such that thesheet of material is formed into a cover about the outer peripheralsurface of the article when the article is moved in a direction whichcauses the lower end of the article to engage a portion of the sheet ofmaterial. As the sheet is engaged, the article and portions of the sheetof material pass into the receiving end of the conveyable cover formingassembly causing the sheet of material to contact or nearly contact boththe outer peripheral surface of the article and the contacting portionsof the conveyable cover forming assembly. As the article is moved thesheet is pressed about the outer peripheral surface of the article toform the cover about the article. The cover has an inner surface facingthe outer peripheral surface of the article and an exposed outersurface.

The apparatus further comprises a conveying assembly for conveying theconveyable cover forming assembly from adjacent the platform to afastener applicating position. The apparatus further comprises afastener applicating device such as a tying device for automaticallyapplying a fastener about a portion of the outer surface of the cover ofthe article for fastening the cover about the article when theconveyable cover forming assembly is conveyed via the conveying assemblyto the fastener applicating position.

Finally, the apparatus comprises a drive assembly for conveying theconveyable cover forming assembly via the conveying assembly to thefastener applicating position adjacent the fastener applicating deviceand for returning the conveyable cover forming assembly via theconveying assembly to a cover forming position adjacent the platform.Optionally, the apparatus may further comprises a labeling device forautomatically applying a label to a portion of the outer surface of thecover of the covered article.

The present invention, as will be understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art, may also be modified such that the tying machine is conveyableto a stationary cover forming apparatus.

The present invention further comprises a method using the apparatusdescribed above for processing an article such as a potted plant orflower pot. The method comprises the first step of providing a platformhaving a support surface formed thereon and an opening extending throughthe support surface in which the opening is sized to accommodate anarticle passed therethrough. In the next step, a conveyable coverforming assembly is provided, such as described above, which isconveyable via a conveying assembly such as a rail.

Next, a sheet of material is placed in a cover forming position over theopening and on the support surface wherein the sheet of material, in thecover forming position, is positioned over the receiving end of theconveyable cover forming assembly. An article, for example a pottedplant or flower pot, is provided. The article is positioned in aposition over the sheet of material and in a position wherein the lowerend of the article is disposed generally above and near the portion ofthe sheet of material which is above the receiving end of the conveyablecover forming assembly.

The sheet of material is formed into a cover about the outer peripheralsurface of the article by moving the article in a direction which causesthe lower end of the article to engage a portion of the sheet ofmaterial whereby the article and portions of the sheet of material passinto the receiving end of the conveyable cover forming assembly causingthe sheet of material to contact or nearly contact both the outerperipheral surface of the article and the contacting portions of theconveyable cover forming assembly as the article is moved. The sheet ispressed about the outer peripheral surface of the article to form thecover about the article.

A fastener applicating device such as a tying device is provided. Theconveyable cover forming assembly is conveyed via the conveying assemblyfrom adjacent the platform to a fastening position adjacent the fastenerapplicating device. A fastener is automatically applied about a portionof the outer surface of the cover of the article for fastening the coverabout the article. The article with the cover fastened thereabout isthen removed.

The Embodiments of FIGS. 1-3

Shown in FIG. 1 and designated therein by the general reference numeral10 is a sheet of material. The sheet of material 10 has a first end 12,a second end 14, a first side 16, a second side 18, an upper surface 20and a lower surface 22.

A closure bonding material 24 may be disposed on the upper surface 20 ofthe sheet of material; alternatively, the sheet of material 10 may befree of a closure bonding material. As shown in FIG. 1, the closurebonding material 24, if present, may be disposed adjacent the first side.16 of the sheet of material 10 and extends between the first and thesecond ends 12 and 14 of the sheet of material 10 or it may be disposedon any other portion of the sheet of material 10. As shown in FIG. 1,the closure bonding material 24 is disposed on the upper surface 20 in astrip of closure bonding material 24, although the closure bondingmaterial 24 also could be applied to the upper surface 20 of the sheetof material 10 in the form of spaced apart spots or the closure bondingmaterial 24 also could be disposed on the upper surface 20 of the sheetof material 10 in any other geometric form and in any pattern includingcovering the entire upper surface 20 of the sheet of material 10. Inthis last-mentioned instance, the closure bonding material and theconnecting bonding material would be contained within the bondingmaterial covering the sheet of material 10. The term "spot" or "spots"includes any geometric shape of spot including, but not limited to, whatis commonly referred to as strips.

The sheet of material 10 has a thickness in a range from about 0.1 milsto about 30 mils. Preferably, the sheet of material 10 has a thicknessin a range from about 0.1 mils to about 5 mils.

The sheet of material 10' may be any shape and a square or rectangularshape is shown in FIG. 1 only by way of example. The sheet of material10, for example only, may be square, rectangular, circular or any othergeometric shape such as heart shaped, for example only.

The sheet of material 10 may be constructed of a single layer ofmaterial or a plurality of layers of the same or different types ofmaterials. Any thickness of the sheet of material 10 may be utilized inaccordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material10 is wrappable about an object, such as a plant or flower pot, asdescribed herein. The layers of material comprising the sheet ofmaterial 10 may be connected together or laminated or may be separatelayers.

Shown in FIG. 2 is a second sheet of material 26. The second sheet ofmaterial 26 has a first end 28, a second end 30, a first side 32, asecond side 34, an upper surface 36 and a lower surface 38. The secondsheet of material 26, if used, may be constructed of paper. The term"paper" as used herein means treated or untreated paper, corrugatedpaper or cardboard or any other form of paper material.

The first sheet of material 10 has a length 40 extending between thefirst and the second sides 16 and 18 of the sheet of material 10. Thefirst sheet of material 10 also has a width 42 extending between thefirst and the second ends 12 and 14 of the first sheet of material 10.

The second sheet of material 26 has a length 44 extending between thefirst and the second sides 32 and 34 of the second sheet of material 26.The second sheet of material 26 has a width 46 extending between thefirst and the second ends 28 and 30 of the second sheet of material 26.In a preferred embodiment, the length 44 of the second sheet of material26 is less than the length 40 of the first sheet of material 10 as shownin FIG. 3 so that, when the first sheet of material 10 is disposedadjacent the second sheet of material 26, a portion of the first sheetof material 10 adjacent the first side 16 thereof extends a distancebeyond the first side 32 of the second sheet of material 26, in a mannerand for reason which will be described in greater detail below.

The first sheet of material has a thickness in a range from about 0.5mils to about 30 mils and preferably the thickness of the first sheet ofmaterial is in a range from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils. The firstsheet of material 10 is constructed of a material which is flexible.

The second sheet of material 26 has a thickness in a range from about0.1 mils to about 30 mils and preferably in a range from about 0.1 milsto about 10 mils. The second sheet of material 26 is flexible, butrelatively rigid compared to the first sheet of material 10.

The second sheet of material 26 may be any shape and a square orrectangular shape is shown in FIG. 2 only by way of example. The secondsheet of material for example only may be square, rectangular, circularor any other geometric shape.

The second sheet of material 26 may be constructed of a single layer ofmaterial or a plurality of layers of the same or different types ofmaterials. Any thickness of the second sheet of material 26 may beutilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the secondsheet of material 26 is wrappable about an object such as a flower pot,as described herein, and as long as the second sheet of material 26provides the rigidity described herein or the absorbency describedherein or both. The layers of material comprising the second sheet ofmaterial 26 may be connected together or laminated or may be separatelayers.

In operation, when a second sheet of material 26 is desired in additionto the first sheet of material 10, the second sheet of material 26 isplaced adjacent the first sheet of material 10 as shown in FIG. 3. Inthis position, the lower surface 38 of the second sheet of material 26is disposed adjacent the upper surface 20 of the first sheet of material10. The width 42 of the first sheet of material 10 is about equal to thewidth 46 of the second sheet of material 26 so that, when the first andthe second sheets of material 10 and 26 are disposed adjacent eachother, the first end 28 of the second sheet of material is generallyaligned with the first end 12 of the first sheet of material 10, thesecond end 30 of the second sheet of material 26 is generally alignedwith the second end 14 of the first sheet of material 10, the secondside 18 of the first sheet of material 10 is generally aligned with thesecond side 34 of the second sheet of material and the first side 16 ofthe first sheet of material 10 extends a distance beyond the first side32 of the second sheet of material 26 so that the closure bondingmaterial 24 on the upper surface 20 of the first sheet of material 10 isexposed and not covered by the second sheet of material 26.

It should be noted that the first and the second sheets of material 10and 26 each could have virtually identical lengths 40 and 44. In thiscase, the second sheet of material 26 is disposed on the first sheet ofmaterial 20 in such a manner that the second side 34 of the second sheetof material 26 extends a distance beyond the second side 18 of the firstsheet of material 10 whereby the first side 16 of the first sheet ofmaterial 10 is spaced a distance from the first side 32 of the secondsheet of material 26 thereby leaving the closure bonding material 24 onthe first sheet of material 10 exposed and not covered by the secondsheet of material 26. Multiple sheets of material 10 and 26 may be used.Moreover, when multiple sheets of material 10 and 26 are used incombination, the sheets of material 10 and 26 need not be uniform insize or shape. Finally, it will be appreciated that the sheets ofmaterial 10 and 26 shown in all embodiments herein are substantiallyflat.

As noted earlier, a closure bonding material may be disposed on theupper surface of the first sheet of material 10. The closure bondingmaterial 24 may be applied as a strip or as spots or other shapes. Onemethod for disposing a closure bonding material, in this case anadhesive, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,637 entitled "Method ForWrapping A Floral Grouping" issued to Weder et al., on May 12, 1992 andwhich is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

The first sheet of material 10 can be utilized alone or in combinationwith the second sheet of material 26 to wrap a potted plant or flowerpot. The term "flower pot" refers to any type of container used forholding a floral grouping or a potted plant. Examples of flower potsused in accordance with the present invention are clay pots, plasticpots, and the like. "Floral grouping" as used herein means cut freshflowers, artificial flowers, a single flower, other fresh and/orartificial plants or other floral materials, and may include othersecondary plants and/or ornamentation or artificial or natural materialswhich add to the aesthetics of the overall floral arrangement. Thefloral grouping comprises a bloom or foliage portion and a stem portion.However, it will be appreciated that the floral grouping may consist ofonly a single bloom or only foliage (not shown). The term "floralgrouping" may be used interchangeably herein with the term "floralarrangement".

The first sheet of material 10 or the second sheet of material 26 may beconstructed of a single layer of material or a plurality of layers ofthe same or different types of materials. Any thickness of the sheet ofmaterial 10 or 26 may be utilized in accordance with the presentinvention as long as the sheet of material 10 or 26 may be wrapped orformed about at least a portion of a flower pot, as described herein.Additionally, an insulating material such as bubble film, preferable asone of two or more layers, can be utilized in order to provideadditional protection for the item wrapped therein.

In a preferred embodiment, the first sheet of material 10 is constructedfrom two polypropylene films (a 20"×15" sheet of Mobil 270 ABW whiteopaque film laminated to a 20"×15" sheet of Mobil 220 AB clear film)having a thickness in a range of from less than about 1.0 mil to about2.5 mils. The layers of material comprising the first sheet of material10 may be connected together or laminated or may be separate layers.

The sheet of material 10 is constructed from any suitable wrappingmaterial that is capable of being wrapped about a flower pot or floralgrouping, as the case may be. Preferably, the wrapping material 10comprises paper (untreated or treated in any manner), cellophane, foil,polymer film, fabric (woven or nonwoven or synthetic or natural),burlap, or combinations thereof.

The term "polymer film" means a man-made polymer such as a polypropyleneor a naturally occurring polymer such as cellophane. A polymer film isrelatively strong and not as subject to tearing (substantiallynon-tearable), as might be the case with paper or foil.

The sheet of material 10 or 26 may vary in color. Further, the sheet ofmaterial 10 or 26 may consist of designs or decorative patterns whichare printed, etched, and/or embossed thereon using inks or otherprinting materials. Art example of an ink which may be applied to thesurface of the sheet of material 10 or 26 is described in U.S. Pat. No.5,147,706 entitled "Water Based Ink On Foil And/Or Synthetic OrganicPolymer" issued to Kingman on Sep. 15, 1992 and which is herebyincorporated herein by reference. In addition, the sheet of material 10or 26 may have various colorings, coatings, flocking and/or metallicfinishes, or other decorative surface ornamentation applied separatelyor simultaneously or may be characterized totally or partially bypearlescent, translucent, transparent, iridescent or the like,qualities. Each of the above-named characteristics may occur alone or incombination and may be applied to the upper and/or lower surface of thesheet of material 10 or 26. Moreover, each surface of the sheet ofmaterial 10 or 26 may vary in the combination of such characteristics.The sheet of material 10 or 26 itself may be opaque, translucent orpartially clear or tinted transparent.

Embodiments of FIGS. 4-8

Referring now to FIG. 4, a bonding material may be applied to either theupper surface of a first sheet of material 10a or to the lower surfaceof a second sheet of material 26a in a plurality of patches 48 for thepurpose of bonding the upper surface of the first sheet 10a to the lowersurface of the second sheet 26a.

Shown in FIG. 5 is a modified first sheet of material 10b connected to amodified second Sheet of material 26b. The first sheet of material 10bis constructed exactly like the sheet of material 10. The second sheetof material 26b is constructed like the sheet of material 26 describedin detail before and shown in FIG. 2, except the second sheet ofmaterial 26b includes a bonding material 60 disposed on the lowersurface 38b of the second sheet of material 26b. The bonding material 60is in the form of a plurality of spaced apart spots of bonding material60, similar to that shown in FIG. 4. The lower surface 38b of the secondsheet of material 26b is bondingly connected to the upper surface 20b ofthe first sheet of material 10b by way of the bonding material 60. Sincethe bonding material 60 is in the form of a plurality of spaced apartspots., a plurality of spaced apart spaces 62 (only one of the spaces 62being designated by reference numeral in FIG. 5) are formed between thelower surface 38b of the second sheet of material 26b and the uppersurface 20b of the first sheet of material 10b . The spaces 62 provideair gaps which form an insulation when the first and the second sheetsof material 10b and 26b are wrapped about a flower pot in a manner andfor reasons like that described herein.

Shown in FIG. 6 is a modified first sheet of material 10c connected to amodified second sheet of material 26c. The first sheet of material 10cis constructed exactly like the sheet of material 10 shown in FIG. 1,except the first sheet of material 10c includes a bonding material 64disposed on the upper surface 20c of the first sheet of material 10c.The bonding material 64 is in the form of a plurality of spaced apartspots of bonding material 64, similar to that shown in FIG. 5. The lowersurface 38c of the second sheet of material 26c is bondingly connectedto the upper surface 20c of the first sheet of material 10c by way ofthe bonding material 64. Since the bonding material 64 is in the form ofa plurality of spaced apart spots, a plurality of spaces 66 (only one ofthe spaces 66 being designated by a reference numeral in FIG. 6) areformed between the lower surface 38c of the second sheet of material 26cand the upper surface 20c of the first sheet of material 10c. The spaces66 provide air gaps which form an insulation when the first and thesecond sheets of material 10c and 26c are wrapped about a flower pot ina manner and for reasons like that described herein in connection withFIG. 5.

Shown in FIG. 7 is a modified first sheet of material 10d connected to amodified second sheet of material 26d. The first sheet of material 10dis constructed exactly like the sheet of material 10 shown in FIG. 1,except the first sheet of material 10d includes a bonding material 68 onthe upper surface 20d thereof. The second sheet of material 26d isconstructed exactly like the second sheet of material 26 shown in FIG.2, except the second sheet of material 26d includes a plurality ofspaced apart raised portions 70. The raised portions 70 may be formed byembossing the second sheet of material 26d or forming corrugations inthe second sheet of material 26d or in any other manner desired in anyparticular application.

The upper surface 20d of the first sheet of material 10d is disposedgenerally adjacent the lower surface 38d of the second sheet of material26d or, more particularly, adjacent the raised portions 70 on the secondsheet of material 26d. In this position, the raised portions 70 arebonded to the upper surface 20d of the first sheet of material 10d byway of the bonding material 68 to connect the first sheet of material10d to the second sheet of material 26d.

The spaced apart raised portions 70 on the second sheet of material 26dform a plurality of spaces 72 between the first sheet of material 10dand the second sheet of material 26d in a connected position of thefirst and the second sheets of material 10d and 26d for providinginsulation when the first and second sheets of material 10d and 26d areconnected together and wrapped about a flower pot in a manner like thatdescribed herein.

Shown in FIG. 8 is a modified first sheet of material 10e connected to amodified second sheet of material 26e. The first sheet of material 10eis constructed exactly like the sheet of material 10 shown in FIG. 1,except the first sheet of material 10e includes a plurality of spacedapart raised portions 74. The raised portions 74 may be formed in thefirst sheet of material 10e by embossing the first sheet of material 10eor forming corrugations in the first sheet of material 10e or in anyother suitable manner. The second sheet of material 26e is constructedexactly like the second sheet of material 26 shown in FIG. 2, except thesecond sheet of material 26e includes a bonding material 76 disposed onthe lower surface 38e thereof.

In operation, the upper surface 20e of the first sheet of material 10eis disposed generally adjacent the lower surface 38e of the second sheetof material 26e or, more particularly, the raised portions 74 on thefirst sheet of material 10e are disposed adjacent the lower surface 38eof the second sheet of material 26e. In this position, the first sheetof material 10e is bondingly connected to the second sheet of material26e by way of the bonding material 76 on the second sheet of material26e or, more particularly, the bonding material 76 on the second sheetof material 26e bondingly engages and bondingly connects to the raisedportions 74 on the first sheet of material 10e to connect the firstsheet of material 10e to the second sheet of material 26e. In thisconnected position of the first sheet of material 10e and the secondsheet of material 26e, the raised portions 74 cooperate to form aplurality of spaces 76, between the first sheet of material 10e and thesecond sheet of material 26e. The spaces 76 cooperate to provide aninsulation when the first and the second sheets of material 10e and 26eare wrapped about a flower pot in a manner and for reasons like thatdescribed herein.

Embodiments of FIGS. 9-10

Referring now to FIG. 9, a plurality of individual sheets of material10f are connected linearly together to form a roll 80. Preferably, theplurality of sheets of material 10f in the roll 80 are connected byperforations 82, as illustrated in FIG. 9. Such a roll 80 permits onesheet of material 10f to be withdrawn from the roll 80, then severed ordisconnected from the roll 80. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10, theroll 80 may simply be formed as a continuous roll 80 of wrappingmaterial without perforations, wherein a plurality of sheets of material10f may be removed from the roll 80 by unrolling a portion of the roll80, and using a separate cutting element (not shown) to sever theunrolled portion of the roll 80 of material to form the sheet ofmaterial 10f. The roll 80 may also be contained within a dispenser 84,as illustrated in FIG. 10. When the roll 80 is disposed in the dispenser84, a portion of the wrapping material is again unrolled, and a serratedcutting edge 86 contained within the dispenser 84, or a separate cuttingelement (not shown), severs the unrolled portion of the wrappingmaterial from the roll 80 to form a sheet of material 10f. Any number ofsheets of material 10f may form the roll 80 as long as it is possible towithdraw at least one sheet 10f from the roll 80 as described herein.

Embodiments of FIGS. 11-12

The first and the second sheets of material described herein can beprovided in the form of a roll of first and second sheets of materialwherein the first and the second sheets of material are unrolled fromthe roll of first and second sheets of material and the first and thesecond sheets of material are severed from the roll either byperforations at spaced apart locations in the roll or by cutting thefirst and the second sheets of material from the roll. It also should benoted that additional sheets of material may be combined with the firstand the second sheets of material if so desired in a particularapplication.

Shown in FIG. 11 is a roll of material 90 comprising a first material 92and a second material 94 with the second material 94 being disposedadjacent the first material 92. The first material 94 is constructed ofany of the materials described before with respect to the first sheet ofmaterial. The second material 94 is constructed of any of the materialsdescribed before with respect to the second sheet of material.

The roll of material 90 is disposed in a dispenser 96 having an opening98 through which the materials 92 and 94 may be withdrawn from the rollof material 90. A cutting edge 100 is disposed on the dispenser 96 nearthe opening 98. The cutting edge 100 may be a sawtooth type of edge, asshown in FIG. 11, or the cutting edge 100 may be any other type of edgeor device suitable for cutting a portion of the materials 92 and 94 fromthe roll of material 90 and the cutting edge 100 may be connected to thedispenser 96 or may be a separate component if desired in particularapplication.

The roll of material 90 has a leading edge 102. In operation, theleading edge 102 is gripped or a portion of the first and/or the secondmaterials are gripped and the first and the second materials areunrolled and withdrawn from the roll of material 90 in a direction 104.The first and the second materials 92 and 94 are withdrawn or unrolledfrom the roll of material 90 until a desired length of the first and thesecond materials 92 and 94 have been withdrawn from the roll of material90. In this position, a portion of the first and the second materials 92and 94 are disposed adjacent the cutting edge 100. The first and thesecond materials 92 and 94 then are maneuvered to pass the first and thesecond materials 92 and 94 over the cutting edge 100 thereby severing aportion of the first and second materials 92 and 94 extending a distancefrom the leading edge 102 thereof from the roll of material 90. Theportion of the first and the second materials 92 and 94 withdrawn fromthe roll of material 90 and severed from the roll of material 90comprise the first and the second sheets of material as describedherein.

The first and the second materials 92 and 94 in the roll of material 90may be connected or unconnected. Further, the roll of material 90 maycomprise two rolls of material with one of the rolls of materialcomprising the first material 92 and the other roll of materialcomprising the second material 94. In this last-mentioned embodiment,the first material 92 is withdrawn from the first roll of material andthe second material 94 is withdrawn from the second roll of materialabout simultaneously so that the first and the second materials 92 and94 are provided in a manner as generally shown in FIG. 11 for severingfrom the first and second rolls of material to provide the first and thesecond sheets of material as described herein. The term "roll ofmaterial" as used herein is intended to encompass two or more rolls inthe manner generally described.

Shown in FIG. 12 is a modified roll of material 90a comprising a firstmaterial 92a and a second material 94a with a leading edge 102a. Theroll of material 90a is constructed exactly like the roll of material 90described before, except the roll of material 90a is not disposed in adispenser constructed like the dispenser 96 shown in FIG. 11. Rather,the roll of material 90a is supported on a generally mounted shaft 106.The first and the second sheets of material 92a and 94a are withdrawnfrom the roll of material 90a in a manner like that described before inconnection with FIG. 11 until a predetermined length of the first andthe second materials 92a and 94a have been withdrawn from the roll ofmaterial 90a. In this position, a portion of the first and the secondmaterials 92a and 94a are disposed under a knife edge 108. The knifeedge 108 is connected to an actuator 110 adapted to move the knife edge108 in a direction 112 and in a direction 114. When the predeterminedlength of the first and the second materials 92a and 94a have beenwithdrawn from the roll of material 90a, the actuator 110 actuates tomove the knife edge 108 in the direction 112 to a position wherein theknife edge 108 severingly engages the materials 92a and 94a toseveringly cut a portion of the first and the second materials 92a and94a from the roll of materials 90a to provide the first and the secondsheets of material as described herein. The actuator 110 may comprise ahydraulic or pneumatic cylinder or a motor and gear arrangement or anyother form of arrangement suitable for moving the knife edge 108 in thedirections 112 and 114. After the knife edge 108 has cuttingly severedthe desired portion of the first and the second sheets of material 92aand 94a from the roll of material 90a, the actuator 110 is actuated tomove the knife edge 108 in the direction 114 to a storage positiondisposed a distance above the first and the second materials 92a and 94aas opposed to the cutting position previously described.

Embodiment of FIG. 13

Shown in FIG. 13 is a pad 116 of first sheets of materials designated bythe reference numerals 10f, 10g, and 10h in FIG. 13 and a plurality ofsecond sheets of material designated in FIG. 13 by the referencenumerals 26f, 26g and 26h. The first sheets of material 10f, 10g and 10hmay be constructed like the sheet of material 10 shown in FIG. 1 anddescribed in detail before and the second sheets of material 26f, 26gand 26h may be constructed like the second sheet of material 26 shown inFIG. 2 and described in detail before, or like any of the other firstand the second sheets of material described herein. The first and thesecond sheets of material 10f, 10g, 10h, 26f, 26g and 26h are connectedin the form of a pad 116 with the closure bonding material 24f, 24g and24h cooperating to connect the first sheets of material 10f, 10g and 10hin the form of the pad 116. The second sheets of material 26f, 26g and26h may be connected to the respective first sheets of material 10f, 10gand 10h or may be interleaved between the adjacent first sheets ofmaterial 10f, 10g and 10h in the pad 116. In the alternative, the secondsheets of material 26f, 26g and 26h may be connected to form the pad 116with the first sheets of material 10f, 10g and 10h being interleaved inthe respective second sheets of material 26f, 26g and 26h and/orconnected thereto. In operation, one of the first sheets of material10f, 10g or 10h along with the adjacent second sheet of material 26f,26g and 26h may be removed from the pad 116 and then placed in positionto be wrapped about the flower pot.

Embodiments of FIGS. 14-16

As noted above, a first sheet of material 10 or a first sheet ofmaterial 10 and a second sheet of material 26 may be used to provide adecorative cover for an object such as a flower pot or a potted plant.To cover the object, the sheet or sheets may be manually orautomatically placed in a position to be formed about the outerperipheral surface of the pot or potted plant as described in moredetail below. Or, the sheet or sheets may be formed into a preformedcover which is then placed in a position to receive the pot or pottedplant using the present invention.

Referring now to FIG. 14, as shown therein and designated by the generalreference numeral 10j is another sheet of material constructed inaccordance with the present invention. The sheet of material 10j shownin FIG. 14 has an upper surface 12j, a lower surface 14j, (now shown) afirst end 16j, a second end 18j, a first side 20j and a second side 22j.The ends 16j and 18j cooperate with the sides 20j and 22j to define anouter peripheral surface 24j of the sheet of material 10j. The outerperipheral surface 24j of the sheet of material 10j is defined byperforations 26j, as shown in FIG. 14.

As shown in FIG. 14, a sheet extension 28j is connected to the outerperipheral surface 24j of the sheet of material 10j. The sheet extension28j extends a distance outwardly from the outer peripheral surface 24jof the sheet of material 10j. The sheet extension 28j has a first end30j, a second end 32j, a first side 34j and a second side 36j. A portionof the sheet extension 28j extends a distance outwardly from the firstend 16j of the sheet of material 10j terminating with the first end 30jof the sheet extension 28j. Another portion of the sheet extension 28jextends a distance outwardly from the second end 18j of the sheet ofmaterial 10j terminating with the second end 32j of the sheet extension28j. Yet another portion of the sheet extension 28j extends a distanceoutwardly from the first side 20j of the sheet of material 10jterminating with the first side 34j of the sheet extension 28j. Stillanother portion of the sheet extension 28j extends a distance outwardlyfrom the second side 22j of the sheet of material 10j terminating withthe second side 36j of the sheet extension 28j.

The sheet extension 28j cooperates with the sheet of material 10j todefine a generally square or rectangularly shaped sheet with theperforations 26j being disposed in a central portion of the sheet anddefining the outer peripheral surface 24j of the sheet of material 10j.Preferably, the sheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j areunitary and formed from a single sheet or plies or multiple sheets oneon top of the other which may or may not be laminated.

The sheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j are constructedfrom any suitable flexible material that is capable of being wrappedabout a flower pot and formed into the covering, as described herein.Preferably, the sheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j areconstructed of a material selected from a group of materials consistingof paper, metal foil, cloth (natural or synthetic), denim, burlap orpolymer film as defined above or combinations thereof.

The sheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j have a thicknessin a range from about 0.1 mils to about 30 mils. Preferably, the sheetof material 10j and the sheet extension 28j have a thickness in a rangefrom about 0.1 mils to about 5 mils.

The sheet 6f material 10j and the sheet extension 28j may be any shapeand a rectangular shape is shown in FIG. 19 only by way of example. Thesheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j, for example only, maybe square, rectangular, circular or any other geometric shape such asheart shaped.

The sheet of material 10j and the sheet extension 28j may be constructedof a single layer of material or a plurality of layers of the same ordifferent types of materials. Any thickness of the sheet of material 10jand the sheet extension 28j may be utilized in accordance with thepresent invention as long as the sheet of material 10j and the sheetextension 28j is wrappable about a flower pot and formable into thecovering, as described herein. The layers of material comprising thesheet of material 10j and the skeet extension 28j may be connectedtogether or laminated or may be separate layers.

The sheet extension 28j is transparent, although a decorative patternalso may be applied to the sheet extension 28j.

The sheet extension 28j preferably includes a bonding material 72j (FIG.14) disposed on the upper surface of the sheet extension 28j andextending about the outer peripheral surface of the sheet extension 28j.After the sheet extension 28j has been formed about the floral grouping,the ends of the sheet of material may be bonded together to provide aclosed end. The term "bonding material" as used herein is as definedbelow.

The sheet extension 28j remains in a position extending about the floralgrouping until it is desired to remove the sheet extension 28j. Thesheet extension 28j is removed from the pot cover (not shown) formedfrom the sheet of material 10j by tearing along the perforations 26j soas to separate the sheet extension 28j. The sheet extension 28j then isremoved leaving the pot cover formed from the sheet of material 10jproviding a decorative cover for a pot.

In addition to the perforations 26j, the sheet extension 28j also mayinclude perforations extending between the perforations 26j and theouter peripheral surface of the sheet extension 28j to further assist inthe removal of the sheet extension 28j when it is no longer desired tokeep the sheet extension 28j extending about the floral grouping.

Shown in FIG. 15 and designated by the general reference number 10k is asheet of material constructed in accordance with the present invention.The sheet of material 10k includes a first end 12k, a second end 14k, afirst side 16k and a second side 18k. The sheet of material 10k alsoincludes an upper surface 20k (FIG. 15) and a lower surface 22k (notshown).

A connecting bonding material 24k is disposed on the upper surface 20kof the sheet of material 10k. The sheet of material 10k has an outerperipheral surface 26k. The connecting bonding material 10k is disposednear and spaced a distance 28k from the outer peripheral surface 26k ofthe sheet of material 10k and extends generally circumferentially aboutthe sheet of material 10k.

The sheet of material 10k shown in FIG. 15 is circularly shaped and theconnecting bonding material 24k extends in a circularly shaped patternover the upper surface 20k of the sheet of material 10k. The sheet ofmaterial 10k may be any geometric shape such as square or rectangular orheart shaped or trapezoidally shaped or any other geometric shape.Further, the connecting bonding material 24k may extend in any geometricpattern over the upper surface 20k of the sheet of material 10k, and thecircularly shaped pattern is shown in FIG. 15 only by way of example.

A sheet extension 25k is connected to the sheet of material 10k. Thesheet extension 25k extends about the outer peripheral surface 26k ofthe sheet of material 10k. The sheet extension 25k extends outwardlyfrom the sheet of material 10k terminating with an outer peripheralsurface 27k. The sheet extension 25k has an upper surface 29k (FIG. 15)and a lower surface 31k (not shown). The upper surface 29k is disposedin a plane about coplanar with the upper surface 20k of the sheet ofmaterial 10k and lower surface 31k is disposed in a plane about coplanarwith the lower surface 22k of the sheet of material 10k.

The sheet extension 25k and the sheet of material 10k may be integrallyconstructed of a single sheet of material or the sheet extension 25k maybe laminated to the sheet of material 10k. A connecting bonding material33k is disposed on the upper surface 29k of the sheet extension 25k. Theconnecting bonding material 33k is disposed near and spaced a distancefrom the outer peripheral surface 27k of the sheet extension 25k andextends generally circumferentially about the sheet extension 25k.

The sheet extension 25k is shown in FIG. 15 as being circularly shaped.The sheet extension 25k may be any geometric shape such as a square orrectangular or heart shaped or trapezoidally shaped or any othergeometric shape and the geometric shape of the sheet extension 25k maybe the same as the geometric shape of the sheet of material 10k or thesheet extension 25k may have a geometric shape different from thegeometric shape of the sheet of material 10k. Further, although thesheet extension 25k is shown in FIG. 15 as extending circumferentiallyabout the outer peripheral surface 26k of the sheet of material 10k, thesheet extension 25k may extend only about a portion of the outerperipheral surface 26k of the sheet of material 10k or the sheetextension 25k may comprise segments with each segment extending about aportion of the outer peripheral Surface 26k of the sheet of material10k.

The sheet of material 10k and the sheet extension 25k may be constructedof a single layer of material or a plurality of layers of the same ordifferent types of materials as described above. Any thickness of thesheet of material 10k and the sheet extension 25k may be utilized inaccordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material10k and the sheet extension 25k are wrappable or formable about a flowerpot or a floral grouping in the manners described herein. The layers ofmaterial comprising the sheet of material 10k and the sheet extension25k may be connected together or laminated or may be separate layers. Adecorative pattern, such as a color and/or an embossed pattern, and/orother decorative surface ornamentation may be applied to the uppersurface 20k and/or the lower surface 22k of the sheet of material 10k orportions thereof as described above.

A decorative pattern, such as a color and/or an embossed pattern, and/orother decorative surface ornamentation may be applied to the uppersurface 29k and/or the lower surface 31k of the sheet extension 25k orportions thereof as described above. The sheet extension 25k also may betotally or partially clear or tinted transparent material as describedabove.

The connecting bonding materials 24k and 33k are shown in FIG. 15 asbeing applied to the upper surface 20k or the upper surface 29k in theform of a circularly shaped strip. The connecting bonding materials 24kor 33k may be applied in the form of spots or spaced apart strips andthe spots may be any geometric pattern or any other type of pattern suchas a logo, for example. Further, the connecting bonding materials 24k or33k may include a color to obscure the fact that the connecting bondingmaterials 24k and 33k are disposed on the sheet of material 10k or thesheet extension 25k.

In a preferred form, a line of perforations 53k (FIG. 15) is formedbetween the sheet of material 10k and the sheet extension 25k. The lineof perforations 53k extends generally about the outer peripheral surface26k of the sheet of material 10k. The sheet extension 25k encompasses afloral grouping (not shown) and provides a protective covering for thefloral grouping to protect the floral grouping during shipment and/orstorage. When it is desired to remove the protective covering providedby the sheet extension 25k, the operator tears the sheet extension 25kalong the line of perforations 53k thereby severing or separating thesheet extension 25k from the sheet of material 10k so that the sheetextension 25k can be removed from the sheet of material 10k or, in otherwords, the protective covering may be removed from the decorativecovering by tearing along the line of perforations 53k.

Alternatively, the sheet of material may be preformed into a cover 120having an opening 122 as shown in FIG. 16. The cover 120 isself-supporting by virtue of overlapping folds which are bonded to eachother, thereby forming a rigid structure. The preformed cover 120 may bedeposited into an opening in a table or platform to support the cover120. A potted plant can then be disposed into the opening 122 of thepreformed cover 120, thereby resulting in a covered potted plant (notshown).

One method for forming such a preformed plant cover or pot cover isshown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,773,182 entitled "Article Forming System"issued to Weder et al., on Sep. 27, 1988, which is hereby incorporatedherein by reference.

The term "bonding material" when used herein means an adhesive,preferably a pressure sensitive adhesive, or a cohesive. Where thebonding material is a cohesive, a similar cohesive material must beplaced on the adjacent surface for bondingly contacting and bondinglyengaging with the cohesive material. The term "bonding material" alsoincludes materials which are heat sealable and, in this instance, theadjacent portions of the material must be brought into contact and thenheat must be applied to effect the seal. The term "bonding material"also includes materials which are sonic sealable and vibratory sealable.The term "bonding material" when used herein also means a heat sealinglacquer which may be applied to the sheet of material and, in thisinstance, heat, sound waves, or vibrations, also must be applied toeffect the sealing.

The term "bonding material" when used herein also means any type ofmaterial or thing which can be used to effect the bonding or connectingof the two adjacent portions of the material or sheet of material toeffect the connection or bonding described herein. The term "bondingmaterial" also includes ties, labels, bands, ribbons, strings, tape,staples or combinations thereof. Some of the bonding materials wouldsecure the ends of the material while other bonding material may bindthe circumference of the wrapper. Another way to secure the wrapping isto heat seal the ends of the material to another portion of thematerial. One way to do this is to contact the ends with an iron ofsufficient heat to heat seal the material.

The term "botanical item" when used herein means a natural or artificialherbaceous or woody plant, taken singly or in combination. The term"botanical item" also means any portion or portions of natural orartificial herbaceous or woody plants including stems, leaves, flowers,blossoms, buds, blooms, cones, or roots, taken singly or in combination,.or in groupings of such portions such as bouquet or floral grouping.

The term "propagule" when used herein means any structure capable ofbeing propagated or acting as an agent of reproduction including seeds,shoots, stems, runners, tubers, plants, leaves, roots or spores.

The term "growing medium" when used herein means any liquid, solid orgaseous material used for plant growth or for the cultivation ofpropagules, including organic and inorganic materials such as soil,humus, perlite, vermiculite, sand, water, and including the nutrients,fertilizers or hormones or combinations thereof required by the plantsor propagules for growth.

The term "band" when used herein means any material which may be securedabout an object such as a flower pot, such bands commonly being referredto as elastic bands or rubber bands and also includes any other type ofmaterial such as a string or elastic piece of material, non-elasticpiece of material, a round piece of material, a flat piece of material,a ribbon, a piece of paper strip, a piece of plastic strip, a piece ofwire, a tie wrap or a twist tie or combinations thereof or any otherdevice capable of gathering the sheet of material to removably orsubstantially permanently form a crimped portion and secure the crimpedportion formed in the sheet of material which may be secured about anobject such as a flower pot. The band also may include a bow if desiredin a particular application.

The sheet of material used herein may further comprise at least onescent (not shown). Examples of scents utilized herein include (but arenot limited to) floral scents (flower blossoms, or any portion of aplant), food scents (chocolate, sugar, fruits), herb or spice scents(cinnamon), and the like. Additional examples of scents include flowers(such as roses, daisies, lilacs), plants (such as fruits, vegetables,grasses, trees), foods (for example, candies, cookies, cake), foodcondiments (such as honey, sugar, salt), herbs, spices, woods, roots,and the like, or any combination of the foregoing. Such scents are knownin the art, and are commercially available.

The scent may be disposed upon the sheet of material 10 by spraying thescent thereupon, painting the scent thereupon, brushing the scentthereupon, lacquering the scent thereupon, immersing the sheet ofmaterial in a scent-containing liquid, exposing the sheet of material toscent-containing gas, or any combination thereof.

The scent may be contained within a lacquer, or other liquid, before itis disposed upon the sheet of material 10. The scent may also becontained within a dye, ink, and/or pigment (not shown). Such dyes, inksand pigments are known in the art, and are commercially available, andmay be disposed upon or incorporated in the sheet of material 10 by anymethod described herein or known in the art.

Embodiments of FIGS. 17-19B

Referring now to FIGS. 17 and 18, an apparatus constructed in accordancewith the present invention is generally referred to by the referencenumeral 126. The cover forming and fastening apparatus 126 comprises aplatform 130 having an upper support surface 132 which has a first end134, a second end 136, a first side 138, and a second side 140. Theplatform 130 has a platform opening 142, as shown in FIG. 18, foraccommodating a conveyable cover forming assembly or mold 146. Theplatform 130 has a plurality of vacuum ports 144 for releasably securinga sheet of material during operation. The conveyable cover formingassembly or mold 146 having an outer peripheral surface 148, a lower end150 and an opening 152, is disposed generally within the platformopening 142 for receiving a potted plant during operation.

The cover forming and fastening machine 126 further comprises aconveying assembly such as a rail 154 having a first end 156 and asecond end 158 and a groove 160 disposed longitudinally therein fromnear first end 156 to near second end 158. On the lower end 150 of theconveyable cover forming assembly or mold 146 is located an adaptor 162.The adaptor 162 fits within the groove 160 of the rail 154.

The cover forming and fastening apparatus 126 further comprises a driveassembly 164 which functions to cause the conveyable cover forming mold146 to be driven from one end of the rail 154 to the other in thedirection 166 from the first end 156 to the second end 158 duringoperation of the apparatus 126. Located generally in the vicinity of end158 of the rail 154 is a fastener applicating assembly such as a tyingmachine 170 of a type commercially available and well known to those ofordinary skill in the art. Examples of fastening machines include tyingmachines such as those commercially available from Saxmeyer, Bunn,Felins, and Cyclops.

The tying machine 170 has a tying arm 172, a knotter head 174, and aspool 176. The spool 176 supplies a fastening element 178 such as astring to the tying arm 172, the opposite end of the fastening element178 being attached to the knotter head 174. The tying machine 170 has atying area 180 to which the conveyable cover forming mold 146 isconveyed along the rail 154 by the drive assembly 164 during operation.

One version of the conveyable cover forming mold 146 is shown in greaterdetail in FIG. 19A. The conveyable cover forming mold 146 has an outerperipheral surface 148, a lower end 150, an opening 152 and an adaptor162 as described above. An alternate version of a conveyable coverforming assembly or mold is shown in FIG. 19B and is generallydesignated by the reference numeral 146a. Mold 146a is comprisedgenerally of a plurality of fingers 147 attached to a lower end 150a ofthe mold 146a and thereby forming an opening 152a sized to receive apot. Attached to the lower end 150a is an adaptor 162a which engages therail 154.

Embodiment of FIGS. 20-21

Referring now to FIGS. 20 and 21, an alternate version of the coverforming and fastening machine is represented generally by the referencenumeral 126a. The cover former and fastening machine 126a is exactly thesame as the cover forming and fastening machine 126 described aboveexcept that in addition it has a platform extension 188 for supplying aroll of material 190 which in turn supplies sheets of material to beused during operation of the apparatus 126a. The roll of material 190,which is similar to rolls 80 or 90 described in FIGS. 9-12 above, ismounted upon a support shaft 192. A portion 194 of the roll of material190 is fed through rollers 196 and 198. Roller 196 moves in direction200 while roller 198 moves in direction 202 thereby causing the portion194 of the roll of material 190 to be advanced through the rolls 196 and198 in direction 204 over the platform extension 188.

As described earlier in greater detail in FIG. 12, the portion ofmaterial 194 is advanced a predetermined distance on the upper surface132 of the platform 130. Once the portion of roll 190 has been advanceda predetermined distance on the platform a knife 208 is actuated by anactuator 210 to sever a portion 194 of the roll 190 from the roll ofmaterial 190 thereby providing a sheet of material sized for use by thecover forming and fastening apparatus 126a.

Embodiments of FIGS. 22A-22D

Referring now to FIGS. 22A-22D, the cover forming and fasteningapparatus is described in operation. By example, the cover forming andfastening machine 126 will be described in operation in FIGS. 22A-22D,but it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that thecover forming and fastening machine 126a works in substantially the samemanner as well as other modified version of the cover forming andfastening machine 126 described herein.

In operation, a sheet of material 214 which may be exactly the same asor similar to any of the sheets of material described in FIGS. 1-15 maybe placed on the upper support surface 132 of the platform 130 as shownin FIG. 22A. A potted plant 215 comprising a plant and the pot in whichthe plant is disposed is disposed generally over the sheet of material214 and above the opening 152 of the conveyable cover forming assemblyor mold 146. The pot of the potted plant has an upper end 216. The sheet214 may be supplied to the upper support surface 132 either manually orautomatically. The potted plant 215 is passed in a direction 217 intothe interior of the conveyable cover forming mold 146 thereby forming acovered potted plant 218 as shown in FIG. 22B. The conveyable coverforming mold 146 containing the covered potted plant 218 is conveyed ina direction 220 by the drive assembly 164 along the rail 154 to thefastening machine 170 as shown in FIG. 22B. The covered potted plant 218in the mold 146 is arrested at a fastening position 180 of the fasteningmachine 170 as shown in FIG. 22C. Once in the fastening position 180 atie or fastener 222 is disposed about the exterior peripheral surface ofthe covered potted plant 218 as shown in FIG. 22D.

The tie or fastener 222 may be applied with or without a bow or in anymanner feasible by the fastening machine.

The covered potted plant 218 having the tie or fastener 222 disposedthereabout is then removed from the conveyable cover forming assembly ormold 146 by lifting the covered potted plant in direction 224. Once thecovered potted plant 218 has been removed from the conveyable coverforming mold 146, the conveyable cover forming mold 146 is returned indirection 226 via the rail 154 to the vicinity of the cover formingplatform 132 by the drive assembly 164 as shown in FIG. 22D.Alternatively, the conveyable cover forming mold 146 may be returned viathe rail 154 to the vicinity of the platform 132 before the coveredpotted plant 218 has been removed.

In another version of the invention, the cover forming and fasteningmachine 126 may further comprise a labeling apparatus (not shown) forautomatically applying a label to a portion of the outer surface of thecover of the covered potted plant 218. Such labeling machines arecommercially available and are known to those of ordinary skill in theart. The sheet of material as described in more detail above, which isused in accordance with the present invention, is constructed frommaterial selected from a group of materials consisting of paper, metalfoil, cloth (natural or synthetic), denim, burlap or polymer film orcombinations thereof.

The apparatus may further comprise a pick and place assembly (not shown)for picking up the article from an article supply and for placing thearticle into the opening to form the covered article. Additionally, theapparatus may further comprise a removal assembly for automaticallyremoving the covered article from the platform. The cover forming andfastening machine 126 may be located on an axis off a 90° angle and maybe portable or stationary. Such pick and place machines and removalassemblies are known to those of ordinary skill in the art and arecommercially available.

As noted earlier, the cover forming and fastening machine 126 can useprecut sheets which are fed manually or automatically with a dispenserwhich feeds a sized sheet from a roll to the proper working position onthe platform. Automatic sheet feeding devices are well known in the art.Examples of such sheet feeding machines are shown in U.S. Pat. No.4,887,805 issued to U.S. Pat. No. Herbert et al., 4,889,331 issued toSardella, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,676 issued to Matsumo et al. Anautomatic sheet feeding machine may be detachably connected to theframework of the apparatus of the present invention.

Embodiments of FIGS. 23-24

Shown in FIGS. 22A-22D is a covered potted plant 218 in which the tie orfastener 222 is applied at a position below the upper end 216 of theflower pot containing the potted plant 215. Alternatively, as indicatedin FIGS. 23 and 24, a tie or fastener may be applied at a position abovethe upper end 216 of the potted plant 215. Designated by the generalreference numeral 218a is a covered potted plant in which a tie orfastener 222a is applied at a position above the upper end 216 of theflower pot containing the potted plant 215.

Shown in FIG. 24, alternatively, is a covered potted plant 218b in whichthe potted plant 215 is covered by a sheet of material 228 having asleeve 230 which forms a sheet extension and which can be closed at aposition 232 above the potted plant 215. The sleeve 230 may bedetachable from the sheet 228 via a perforation zone 234.

Changes may be made in the construction and the operation of the variouscomponents, elements and assemblies described herein or in the steps orin the sequence of steps of the methods described herein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in thefollowing claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for processing an article,comprising:providing the article having an outer peripheral surface andan upper end; providing a sheet of material; positioning the article ina position over the sheet of forming the sheet of material about theouter peripheral surface of the article so that the sheet is pressedabout the outer peripheral surface of the article to form a cover aboutthe article, the cover having an inner surface facing the outerperipheral surface of the article and an exposed outer surface;providing a fastener applicating means having a fastening station forapplying a fastener about the cover; moving the article having the coverformed about the outer periperal surface of the article to the fasteningstation of the fastener applicating means; automatically applying thefastener about a portion of the outer surface of the cover of thearticle for fastening the cover about the article; and removing thearticle with the cover fastened thereabout.
 2. The method of claim 1wherein, in the step of forming the sheet of material about the outerperipheral surface of the article, the material further comprises amaterial selected from a group of materials consisting of paper, metalfoil, cloth (natural or synthetic), denim, burlap or polymer film orcombinations thereof.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the fastenerapplicating means is a tying device.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein inthe step of providing the article, the article is further defined as apot containing a botanical item therein.
 5. The method of claim 1wherein the step of forming the sheet of material about the outerperipheral surface of the article is performed automatically by using anautomatic pick and place means for picking up the article and forplacing the article in a cover forming position whereby the sheet ofmaterial is formed into the cover extending about the outer peripheralsurface of the article.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein in the step ofautomatically applying a fastener, the fastener is selected from a groupconsisting of elastic or non-elastic string, wire, thread, elastic,ribbon, wire and tape.
 7. The method of claim 1 comprising theadditional step of engaging an automatic labeling means andautomatically applying a label to a portion of the outer surface of thecover of the article.
 8. The method of claim 4 wherein the fastener isapplied about a portion of the cover which is disposed below the upperend of the pot.
 9. The method of claim 4 wherein the fastener is appliedabout a portion of the cover which extends above the upper end of thepot.
 10. A method for applying and fastening a sheet of material about apot, comprising:providing a pot having an upper end, a lower end and anouter peripheral surface; providing a sheet of material; forming thesheet of material into a cover about at least a portion of the bottomand the outer peripheral surface of the pot wherein the sheet is pressedabout at least a portion of the bottom and the outer peripheral surfaceof the pot to form the cover about the pot; providing a fastenerapplicating means for automatically applying a fastener about the cover;conveying the pot having the cover formed about at least a portion ofthe bottom and the outer peripheral surface thereof to a fasteningposition of the fastener applicating means; automatically applying afastener via the fastener applicating means about a portion of the coverof the pot for fastening the cover about the pot; and removing the potwith the cover fastened thereabout.
 11. The method of claim 10 whereinthe fastener is applied to a portion of the cover which is disposedabove the upper end of the pot.
 12. The method of claim 10 wherein thefastener is applied to a portion of the cover which is disposed belowthe upper end of the pot.
 13. The method of claim 10 wherein in the stepof placing the sheet of material about at least a portion of the bottomand outer peripheral surface of the pot, the material further comprisesa material selected from a group of materials consisting of paper, metalfoil, cloth (natural or synthetic), denim, burlap or polymer film orcombinations thereof.
 14. The method of claim 10 wherein the fastenerapplicating means is a tying device.
 15. The method of claim 10 whereinthe pot is further defined as a flower pot having a botanical itemdisposed therein.
 16. The method of claim 12 wherein the step of formingthe sheet of material about the outer peripheral surface of the pot isperformed automatically by using an automatic pick and place means forpicking up the pot and for placing the pot in a cover forming positionwhereby the sheet of material is formed into the cover extending aboutat least a portion of the bottom and the outer peripheral surface of thepot.
 17. The method of claim 10 wherein in the step of automaticallyapplying a fastener, the fastener is selected from a group consisting ofelastic or non-elastic string, wire, thread, elastic, ribbon, wire andtape.
 18. The method of claim 10 comprising the additional step ofengaging an automatic labeling means and automatically applying a labelto a portion of the outer surface of the cover of the pot.
 19. Anapparatus for processing an article, comprising:cover forming means forforming a sheet of material into a cover about the article; conveyingmeans for conveying the cover forming means and the article having thecover formed thereabout from a cover forming position to a fastenerapplicating position; fastener applicating means for automaticallyapplying a fastener about a portion of the cover of the article forfastening the cover about the article; and drive means for conveying thecover forming means via the conveying means to the fastener applicatingposition of the fastener applicating means and for returning the coverforming means via the conveying means to the cover forming position. 20.The apparatus of claim 19 wherein the sheet of material is constructedfrom a material selected from a group of materials consisting of paper,metal foil, cloth (natural or synthetic), denim, burlap or polymer filmor combinations thereof.
 21. The apparatus of claim 19 furthercomprising means for automatically placing the sheet of material on thecover forming means.
 22. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein the coverforming means is adapted to receive a flower pot.
 23. The apparatus ofclaim 19 further comprising means for automatically picking up thearticle from an article supply and for placing the article in the coverforming position in the cover forming means.
 24. The apparatus of claim19 wherein the fastener applied by the fastener applicating means isselected from a group consisting of elastic or non-elastic string, wire,thread, elastic, ribbon, wire and tape.
 25. The apparatus of claim 19further comprising automatic removal means for automatically removingthe article having the cover fastened thereabout by the fastener. 26.The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the fastener applicating means appliesthe fastener to the cover at a position above the upper end of thearticle.
 27. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein the fastener applicatingmeans applies the fastener to the cover at a position below the upperend of the article.
 28. An apparatus for fastening a sheet of materialabout a pot, comprising:cover forming means for forming the sheet ofmaterial into a cover which extends about at least a portion of the pot;conveying means for conveying the cover forming means and the pot havingthe cover formed thereabout from a cover forming position to a fastenerapplicating position; fastener applicating means for automaticallyapplying a fastener about a portion of the cover of the pot forfastening the cover about the pot when same are in the fastenerapplicating position; and drive means for conveying the cover formingmeans via the conveying means to the fastener applicating position ofthe fastener applicating means and for returning the cover forming meansvia the conveying means to the cover forming position of the coverforming means.
 29. The apparatus of claim 28 wherein the sheet ofmaterial is constructed from a material selected from a group ofmaterials consisting of paper, metal foil, cloth (natural or synthetic),denim, burlap or polymer film or combinations thereof.
 30. The apparatusof claim 28 further comprising means for automatically positioning thesheet of material on the cover forming means.
 31. The apparatus of claim28 further comprising means for automatically picking up the pot from apot supply and for placing the pot in the cover forming means.
 32. Theapparatus of claim 28 wherein the fastener applied by the fastenerapplicating means is selected from a group consisting of elastic ornon-elastic string, wire, thread, elastic, ribbon, wire and tape. 33.The apparatus of claim 28 further comprising removal means forautomatically removing the pot having the cover secured thereabout bythe fastener.
 34. The apparatus of claim 28 wherein the fastenerapplicating means applies the fastener in a position above the upper endof the pot.
 35. The apparatus of claim 28 wherein the fastenerapplicating means applies the fastener in a position below the upper endof the pot.
 36. A method for processing an article, comprising:providingcover forming means in a cover forming position for forming a sheet ofmaterial into a cover which extends about the article; providing thesheet of material; providing the article; moving the article and thesheet of material into the cover forming means wherein the sheet ispressed about the article to form the cover about the article, the coverhaving an outer surface; providing a fastener applicating means forautomatically applying a fastener about the cover; conveying the coverforming means and the article having the cover pressed thereabout fromthe cover forming position to a fastening position of the fastenerapplicating means; automatically applying a fastener about a portion ofthe cover of the article for fastening the cover about the article; andengaging an automatic labeling means for automatically applying a labelto a portion of the outer surface of the cover of the article.
 37. Amethod for applying and fastening a sheet of material about a pot,comprising:providing cover forming means in a cover forming position forforming the sheet of material into a cover which extends about at leasta portion of the pot, the cover forming means sized to receive the pot;disposing the sheet of material in position on the cover forming means;providing the pot; moving the pot and the sheet of material into thecover forming means wherein the sheet of material is pressed about thepot to form the cover about the pot, the cover having an outer surface;providing a fastener applicating means for automatically applying afastener about the cover; conveying the cover forming means and thearticle having the cover formed thereabout from the cover formingposition to a fastening position of the fastener applicating means;automatically applying the fastener about a portion of the cover of thepot for fastening the cover about the pot; and engaging an automaticlabeling means for automatically applying a label to a portion of theouter surface of the cover of the pot.
 38. An apparatus for processingan article, comprising:cover forming means for forming a sheet ofmaterial into a cover about the article; rail means for conveying thecover forming means and the article having the cover formed thereaboutfrom a cover forming position to a fastener applicating position;fastener applicating means for automatically applying a fastener about aportion of the cover for fastening the cover about the article when sameare disposed in the fastener applicating position; and drive means forconveying the cover forming means via the rail means to the fastenerapplicating position of the fastener applicating means and for returningthe cover forming means via the rail means to the cover formingposition.
 39. An apparatus for processing an article, comprising:coverforming means sized to receive the article for forming a sheet ofmaterial into a cover about the article when the article and sheet ofmaterial are moved into the cover forming means, the cover having anouter surface; conveying means for conveying the cover forming means andthe article having the cover formed thereabout from a cover formingposition to a fastener applicating position; fastener applicating meansfor automatically applying a fastener about a portion of the cover ofthe article for fastening the cover about the article; labeling meansfor automatically applying a label to a portion of the outer surface ofthe cover; and drive means for conveying the cover forming means via theconveying means to the fastener applicating position of the fastenerapplicating means and for returning the cover forming means via theconveying means to the cover forming position.
 40. An apparatus forfastening a sheet of material about a pot, comprising:cover formingmeans sized to receive a pot for forming a sheet of material into acover about at least a portion of the pot when the pot is moved into thecover forming means; rail means for conveying the cover forming meansand the pot having the cover disposed thereabout from a cover formingposition to a fastener applicating position; fastener applicating meansfor automatically applying a fastener about a portion of the cover ofthe pot for fastening the cover about the pot; and drive means forconveying the cover forming means via the rail means to the fastenerapplicating position of the fastener applicating means and for returningthe cover forming means via the rail means to the cover formingposition.
 41. An apparatus for fastening a sheet of material about apot, comprising:cover forming means for forming a sheet of material intoa cover extending about the pot; conveying means for conveying the coverforming means and the pot having the cover formed thereabout from acover forming position to a fastener applicating position; fastenerapplicating means for automatically applying a fastener about a portionof the cover of the pot for fastening the cover about the pot; labelingmeans for automatically applying a label to a portion of the outersurface of the cover; and drive means for conveying the cover formingmeans via the conveying means to the fastener applicating position ofthe fastener applicating means and for returning the cover forming meansvia the conveying means to the cover forming position.